ROSEBURG, Ore. -- On Wednesday, Dec. 6, a broad-based committee will meet in Roseburg to discuss forestland smoke. The Smoke Management Program Review Committee will continue its task of recommending improvements for how the state can use controlled burns to improve forest health and protect nearby residents from wildfire while minimizing smoke impacts on communities to protect public health.

The public is invited to attend. The meeting will be at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 2110 Frear St. in Roseburg. It will last from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with an opportunity for public comment during the noon hour. The meeting space is accessible to persons with disabilities. Requests for an interpreter for the hearing impaired or other accommodations for persons with disabilities should be made at least 48 hours before the meeting by contacting Chrystal Bader at 503-945-7220.

The 20-person committee was appointed by the Oregon Department of Forestry working with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. The committee is made up of forest landowners, public health representatives, the American Lung Association, forest collaboratives and environmentalist groups, county and city elected officials, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management and a tribal representative.

The committee is seeking to produce a set of recommendations for the departments of Forestry and Environmental Quality to consider. The committee's work will be presented to the Board of Forestry and the Environmental Quality Commission in 2018. Committee recommendations will also inform potential updates to the state's Smoke Management Plan. That plan is administered by ODF and approved by the Board of Forestry and the Environmental Quality Commission. The Smoke Management Plan is part of the state's plan for implementing the federal Clean Air Act.

According to ODF records, last year controlled fires were set on 181,800 forested acres in Oregon, above the 10-year annual average of 165,999 acres. Those fires burned an estimated 1.3 million tons of woody debris. Peak burning is in the spring and fall.

The committee is expected to hold one more meeting -- on Wednesday, Jan. 31 in Salem.
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